The UK government is extending its knife-crime programme to more than 230 areas in England and Wales, covering 27 police forces. Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood announced the expansion on 18 September 2026.

Each plan will be tailored locally. It may include extra patrols, CCTV, better lighting and redesign of places where weapons could be hidden. Enforcement will sit alongside programmes for young people at risk of becoming victims or perpetrators.

The Home Office says that in seven forces — the Metropolitan Police, West Midlands, Greater Manchester, West Yorkshire, South Yorkshire, Avon and Somerset and British Transport Police — knife-enabled robbery has fallen by nearly a quarter (23%) since the general election, with more than 3,600 fewer reported incidents. That figure is not automatically extended to all 230 new areas.

The government also says overall knife crime is down 11% since it took office, on a path towards a ten-year target of halving it. Those comparisons need to be watched over time and read alongside broader crime trends.

Mahmood visited the West Midlands on 17 September, one of the regions receiving extra funding. She was joined by mothers who lost children to knives and who sit on the government’s knife-crime coalition.

Police and local authorities will choose the precise mix of measures. Success should be judged by incidents, repeat offending, youth safety and community trust, not only by how many areas are listed in the programme.

Image: Metropolitan Police Mounted Branch, London / Wikimedia Commons. A horse patrol, not one of the 230 areas announced on 18 September. Cropped to 16:9.

Source consulted: Home Office — Government expands crackdown on knife crime; Office for National Statistics — Crime and justice.